I gave a Backpacking and Camping for Women presentation in 2020, for the Chief Seattle Council (BSA) Program and Training Conference. As part of the class, I shared my packing list. Many folks requested the list, so I’m including it here. Use it as a starting point for your own gear-gathering journey. If you’d like to share, please attribute it to me, and link back to my blog. Enjoy!
I was up to my eyeballs, studying for midterms, when wonder of wonders! I started talking about the upcoming hiking season. My better half (aka the World’s Most Longsuffering Husband) said he’d know when hiking season was approaching, by the round-the-clock sound of my dehydrator.
I made a face at him, but I realized he was right. This time last year, I was starting to get things organized, food wise.
I developed some favorites last year, banana chips and pasta+olive oil+parmesan chief among them. But I know I need to expand my repertoire, or at least my understanding of best trail food practices.
Enter Brenda Braaten, Ph.D, R.D., a long distance hiker with a desire to help others eat wisely on the trail. www.thru-hiker.com has referenced her work, and has a great series of articles on trail nutrition. See specifically Pack Light, Eat Right.
Once those pesky midterms are over, I plan to dive in and start making plans for summer. On the other hand, maybe I’d better wait until after finals…
Mountain Education, a non-profit Wilderness Safety organization, has just announced a new course at Stevens Pass, in March.
Snow Basics is a three day course focusing on snow hiking, camping, and safety. Right now they’re gauging interest, and if there are eight or more folks who would like to sign up, they’ll come up from Tahoe to teach the course. I’m strongly interested myself, as I’d like to round out my snow skills.
For more info, check out http://mountaineducation.org/snow-basics-course-description/. And if you’re interested, ping Ned Tibbets at ned@mountaineducation.org.
Rest Step Hikes 